“I moved into the rotation in the second half of the season, which gave me a chance to throw and develop all my pitches,” said Axelrod.

After yielding a two-out single to Kinston first baseman Jeremie Tice in the first inning, Axelrod was all but unhittable. The Cal-Irvine product set down the next 19 batters through the end of the seventh.

“I was spotting my fastball pretty well and my cutter. My changeup was working pretty well too,” he said.

Axerod, drafted by San Diego in 2007, has allowed 103 hits and has a 92 K / 15 BB ratio in 109.1 innings this year.